


The Fox and The Lion

by Gloomier



Category: Naruto
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Light Angst, Umino Hours Discord Server 60 Minutes To Gift Exchange
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-08
Updated: 2020-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:27:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23057716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gloomier/pseuds/Gloomier
Summary: Iruka reminisces over the past while he and Naruto enjoy Konoha's annual Fire Festival.
Relationships: Umino Iruka & Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 10
Kudos: 27
Collections: 60 Mins To Gift - Masks





	The Fox and The Lion

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LiveAndLetRain (CaraLee)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaraLee/gifts).



> Written for the 60-minute gift exchange for the Iruka discord!
> 
> My keyword was _fantastic_ and the color was _yellow_.

It was that time of year again.

Summer had once more returned to Konoha and with it the annual Fire Festival.

It was always a highly anticipated event, a chance to relax and enjoy good food and good company. The academy was let out for the entire week and fewer missions were handed out, which meant less work for Iruka.

That’s how he found himself being dragged around the crowded streets, lined with all sorts of stalls, by Naruto.

“Isn’t this great, Iruka!?” Naruto exclaimed loudly, as they went. He was all but skipping along as his head swiveled, trying to look at everything all at once. The kid looked like an overexcited puppy.

“It sure is, Naruto,” Iruka agreed, smiling at his former student fondly. He thought of the kid as more of a little brother at this point.

“Oh! Can we get taiyaki?”

Before Iruka could even tell him yes, he was already being dragged over to the stall. He apologized to people Naruto bumped into as they passed.

Naruto turned and looked up at him, smilingly widely as he pointed to one of the trays piled with fish-shaped cakes labeled as chocolate. “Look they have the chocolate filled ones!”

“I see that, Naruto.” Iruka replied, grinning back at Naruto, “We’ll take two of those, please!”

Iruka paid for their treats and they continued along down the street as they ate.

It wasn’t long after they had finished their taiyaki that Naruto stopped again. This time they were standing in front of a stall selling masks.

Naruto looked at the display where the masks were hung, eyes roaming over the interesting collection.

Iruka looked too, eyes tracing the intricate markings of each uniquely shaped mask… Until his eyes fell on the hound mask. The very same mask Naruto had worn that night in the cemetery a few years ago. The memory of confronting Naruto, thinking of him as nothing but a monster made him ache.

Iruka would never be able to forget how distraught Naruto had been.

_ “Why do you all look at me like that?!” _

Despite how he had felt and treated Naruto back then, Iruka had been heartbroken by Naruto’s words and expression. It had helped to pave the way for Iruka to change the way he viewed the kid.

Naruto was not the fox demon.

Iruka forced his gaze away from that particular mask and instead settled on one with yellow markings. Its features looked feline, and the yellow marks around the edge of the mask were mane-like.

“Would you like a mask, Naruto?” Iruka asked, looking down at the kid who was still looking at all the masks.

Naruto looked excited for a split second before the expression fell into a more subdued, but thoughtful one. “Is that okay?” he asked, slow and unsure.

“Yep,” Iruka said, then pointed at the mask with yellow marks. “How about that one?”

“The lion mask? Fantastic choice!” the stall owner said jovially as he pulled it off the display.

Watching Naruto’s face light up as he was handed that mask would easily outshine the bad memory.

A lion, after all, was more fitting for someone such as Naruto, who had a noble heart and unwavering determination.


End file.
